Week 12 Packers Winners and Losers vs. the Lions

The Green Bay Packers stepped up on the big stage against the division leaders.

What a way to kick off Week 12! The Green Bay Packers are officially 5-6 after defeating the division rival Detroit Lions during the early Thanksgiving game. This is Green Bay’s first win against Detroit since the 2021 season, and what a statement win it was. The Packers are still in the thick of the playoff race, during a rebuild year. Imagine that, folks.

Let’s dive into this week’s winners, because aside from everyone at home who had to watch the halftime performance, there are no losers.

Winner: Jordan Love

QB Jordan Love and the rest of the Packers offense got off to a hot start, scoring almost immediately after a deep shot to Christian Watson on the first play of the game. Love’s TD pass to Jayden Reed was one of the best throws I’ve seen from the young QB this season; placing the ball only where his receiver could get it. The very next drive, he threw a beautiful pass to Malik Heath for a 16-yard gain, and suddenly I had visions of what this offense could do with a healthy group of guys next year. There were a lot more “wow” throws today than we’ve seen in the past. There was also a convincing fake handoff during the fourth quarter, and Love showed off those legs for the team’s biggest run of the game, 37 yards.

At halftime, Love’s stat line was 15/20 for 189 yards, 2 TDs, and a rating of 137.3. He finished the game 22/32 for 268 yards, 3 TDs, and a rating of 125.5. On a short week, and with a depleted group of weapons, these numbers are impressive. Last week, I wrote about Jordan Love’s next contract, and how I didn’t find it likely the Packers would try to extend him before the 2024 season began. I think Love might be proving me wrong.

Winner: Christian Watson

Welcome back, buddy. After a difficult stretch of games and some tumultuous discussions online surrounding #9, Christian Watson had easily his best game of the season. There were multiple impressive catches, including a 53-yarder on the very first play of the game, as well as a sideline catch where he was miraculously able to keep his feet in bounds. Watson led all receivers today with 5 catches for 94 yards (18.8 avg) and a score.

Winner: Malik Heath

After logging just one reception all season, Heath stepped up today, catching all four of his targets for 46 yards, the team’s second-most of the day. Let’s get this man a touchdown and his breakout game before the season ends.

Winner: Tucker Kraft

It’s official: the third-round curse has been broken. For this week. After being robbed of a touchdown last week by his own foot, the Packers’ new TE1 scored his first career TD to give the team their second-straight scoring drive to start the game. Kraft was only targeted twice, but he caught both of these passes for a total of 15 yards.

Winner: Rashan Gary

What. A. Game. The Packers’ sack leader this season added three more to his total today, two of them coming in the first half of the game. Along with his own fumble recovery (one of three total for the Packers), Gary forced a fumble which was recovered by Jonathan Owens for a score. He’s been the most dominant player on defense for the Packers this year, and it’s safe to say he’s earned his recent contract extension.

Winner: Jonathan Owens

The Packers’ starting safety has had some highs and lows throughout the season. Today, it was all highs. On a great day for the entire defense, Owens had their best play, recovering a fumble forced by Rashan Gary, and bringing it in for a score. He had a huge hit on Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs towards the end of the third quarter. He had another tackle for a loss on third down near the end of the game, which forced the Lions to go for it on fourth down, and Detroit failed.

Winner: AJ Dillon

He only rushed for 43 yards, with a 3.1 avg, but he hurdled a guy, and I think that’s cool.

Winner: Robert Rochell

You don’t have to know who he is. After a Packers punt in the third quarter, Rochell kept the ball out of the endzone, which was instantly grabbed by fellow-not-real-person Zayne Anderson, giving the Lions tough field position. This is one of the coolest plays I’ve seen from Green Bay’s special teams unit in a long time.

The Packers get a much needed mini-bye before they face off against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night Football next week. Jordan Love’s first NFL start came against the Chiefs; can he lead the Packers to a win this time?